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Master bedroom.

clean lines and durable materials, such as concrete for the the new portion of the house. The reclaimed wood is
shared floor of the lower level kitchen, dining room, and now a feature wall—installed by the clients themselves—
artist studio. A plywood bench wraps two sides of the that serves as a backdrop to the open-riser stairway
kitchen beneath energy-efficient windows overlooking where the old house merges with the new addition.
the back yard. That level of client involvement, both in the
Upstairs, the master suite’s ceiling tilts up to receive construction and in the design process that preceded it, was
clerestory daylight where the addition’s roof shifts from a treat for Tokunaga, who operates as a solo practitioner.
pitched to flat. Wood flooring salvaged from the previous “I always felt that the best projects are where true
addition was reused in the new master bedroom on the collaboration takes place between the homeowners and
northern half of the addition. Where openings between myself,” she said. So, when the clients suggested lowering
rooms were expanded, hints of the original layout remain a window to allow their child to be able to see who might
where flooring once covered by partitions is now exposed. be arriving in the driveway, she agreed, knowing first-hand
This uncovered flooring, along with the not-quite-perfect what it’s like to have young children at home. “Life turns
edges of the walls that have been tucked back, serve as upside-down,” she said. “Going through that together, I
visible reminders of the house’s history. Perhaps this is could relate to what their needs might be and what the
where Tokunaga’s background really shows through: The budget constraints mean.”
Japanese art form kintsugi, which uses gold lacquer to For starters, budget constraints meant planning for a
repair broken pieces of pottery, respects the mending deck outside the living room that was value-engineered
process as much as the original form. Here, revealing the out during the construction process (it has since been
traces of the original building highlights the contrast installed). More broadly, Tokunaga was able to keep
between new and old. within budget by using limited but functional materials,
However, unifying the two temporally distinct zones and by keeping construction methods simple. The
of the house provided its own challenge: “We were clear, embrace of simplicity may be the defining characteristic
the homeowners and myself, from day one that this would of Tokunaga’s work: “Our life is not so simple,” she said.
be a modern addition to this historic bungalow,” Tokunaga “So the container has to be this quiet haven.”
said. Her upbringing in Japan, where new construction With the rooms untangled and the views outside
rises alongside millennia-old buildings, made it easy for restored, Tokunaga has brought that poetic sensibility to
her to feel comfortable with that dichotomy. “Culturally, the house in Takoma Park. The transitions between the
we’re not afraid of something that’s not completely original house and the new addition aren’t seamless, but
historic,” she said. “But I also felt we needed something rather sewn together in a way that makes the seams
to tie that together.” themselves quietly reference the transformation process,
During the demolition, the contractor, who had started with the family benefitting from the connections they’ll
out as a woodworker, removed Douglas fir studs that continue to forge together.
had darkened over time, and planed them for reuse in

30 NOT-SO-BUNGALOW